Good marketing is essential for Catholic schools’ survival and growth.  In fact, Catholic schools that use professional marketing services have been shown to be more successful at fundraising and growing enrollment than schools that do not use these services.  Even when budgets are tight, schools should strongly consider funding marketing efforts because of the potential return on investment of those dollars.  However, the reality is that many schools don’t have ANY funds that aren’t already allocated to essential services.  In those cases, schools and parishes must look for low-cost or no-cost ways to promote themselves and their mission, such as through a marketing stewardship program.

Many Catholics mistakenly think stewardship is just about weekly collections.  However, a true stewardship program is a combination of time, talent, and treasure donated by individuals and families to serve specific needs within the parish and/or school.  Through a marketing stewardship ministry, you can reach out to individuals in your parish or school community who have marketing expertise and who are not only willing to help, but who are willing to take on the leadership roles necessary to steer projects to completion. 

A dedicated, knowledgeable group can accomplish a number of tasks with little or no funding, such as: soliciting donations of goods and services aligned with your most important marketing needs, such computer, printing, telemarketing, or media services like photography, videography, and graphic design creating a website specifically for marketing the school

 

launching a social networking campaign using Facebook and Twitter seeking high-visibility opportunities for your students to demonstrate their character and know-how, such as community volunteer projects and other parish ministries, like soup kitchens, eldercare projects, and homeless outreach looking for opportunities to mark school milestones and successes and inviting the local media inviting outsiders to school events and allowing them to witness the culture and atmosphere

holding after-hours and weekend game nights, open houses, and celebrations on school grounds and encouraging parents and students to invite other families who might want to join your school community taking the opportunity during non-school related events, such as bingo or fish fries, to present a five-minute “commercial” about your school picking specific fundraising goals, such as purchasing new computers or smart boards